03 March 2015.
By Ben Barry, Senior Fellow for Land Warfare
As is detailed in The Military Balance 2015, the UK is still the fifth biggest defence spender in the world, and it remains the second biggest spender in NATO. In addition to this, as Ben Barry notes, the British armed forces continue to uphold a reputation for professionalism and effectiveness.
But, the 8-9% decrease in the UK military defence budget as compared to...

02 March 2015.
By Kathryn Morisy, Events Administrator, IISS-US
In October 2014, the US Army released the Army Operating Concept (AOC), ‘Win in a Complex World,’ which describes the future of armed conflict and the ways in which the US Army will adapt and prepare. On 19 February, Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster, Director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center (ARCIC) and Deputy Commanding General for US Army Training and Doctrine Command for Futures, spoke...

Those who were hoping that French President François Hollande would use a recent speech to break with France's nuclear traditions will have been disappointed. With a majority of the population supporting its retention, Hollande outlined a realistic and sober vision for France's nuclear deterrent.

19 February 2015.
The Ebola crisis; Defence economics;
Kenya: Defence economics
The Somali National Army: structural and operational developments; Operations and tactics; International training support

18 February 2015.
By Joseph Dempsey, Research Analyst, Military Balance Online
The long-running insurgency of Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Audacious incidents, such as the kidnap of the Chibok schoolgirls in 2014, and the failure of the Nigerian armed forces to adequately stem the tide of insurgent activity, coupled with Boko Haram mounting attacks in Nigeria’s neighbours, culminated in early 2015 with wider acknowledgement that this had...

Japan's rising defence spending is part of an effort by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to carve out a greater regional security role for his country, commensurate with its status as the world's third-largest economy.

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